I'm a couch potato. There, I've said it. I love sitting down and watching sci-fi movies, like any good geek would. And this is an (almost religious) action that hasn't changed for many, many, years. But I feel that we're in for a surprise soon. The way we watch TV and access content is about to change. TV watching will at last arrive into the 21st Century, and the technology giants will be there to duke it out for the reins of this new industry.

What you describe is something that can all be done in software, which can then be run on any hardware platform the end-user desires. Then, it doesn't matter if it's run on a high-end TV with an embedded processor, a set-top box, a PVR, a PS3, a Wii, an HTPC, etc.

Rather than trying to get an entire industry to standardise on a single hardware platform with a single software platform on top, why not try to get the set-top box industry to standardise on a software interface? Then it won't matter what hardware you have. Similar to how Boxee/MythTV/Netflix all run on different hardware platforms, providing the same/similar features, all displaying on TVs of all shapes, sizes, and styles.

Everything that you describe fits perfectly into an uber-STB. And has absolutely no place, whatsoever, as a built-in part of a TV.